£1bn for firms who hire youth November 24, 2011 The government will hand £1bn to private firms in a bid to tackle rising youth unemployment, Nick Clegg, the deputy Prime Minister, will announce today. Under the “Youth Contract”, firms will be eligible for a subsidy of £2,275 for each employee aged 18 to 24 years old they take on. There will be 160,000 such [...]
MPC’s Fisher: Significant risk of a double dip recession in the UK October 27, 2011 A RECESSION may be on the way, Paul Fisher from the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) warned yesterday, as new data revealed retail sales and consumer confidence are plummeting. The economy could “slide back approaching a recession, which is always possible with the sort of financial crisis overhanging,” Fisher told Bloomberg Television. In [...]
MPC’s Fisher: Significant risk of a double dip recession in the UK October 27, 2011 A RECESSION may be on the way, Paul Fisher from the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) warned yesterday, as new data revealed retail sales and consumer confidence are plummeting. The economy could “slide back approaching a recession, which is always possible with the sort of financial crisis overhanging,” Fisher told Bloomberg Television. In [...]
Our schools must be open to business so we can have a bright economic future January 10, 2012 NOW that pupils are back at school, it’s time to help them get down to business. One key question they need to be asked is: “Hands up who wants to go into business?” Their answer will not only shape the life chances of millions of young people, but will also have a dramatic impact on [...]
UK infrastructure bottleneck stifles investment and jobs September 8, 2011 TACKLING Britain’s crumbling infrastructure would create jobs and boost competitiveness at a critical moment, businesses said in a survey out today. But 98 per cent of 447 companies surveyed see the complexities of the current planning system as a barrier to infrastructure investment. Fifty-eight per cent of businesses think the UK’s infrastructure compares unfavourably against [...]
UK’s factories bounced back this month August 23, 2011 BRITAIN’S manufacturing sector has held up surprisingly well this month, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) claimed yesterday. The CBI survey for August was notably more upbeat than other recent studies – such as a purchasing managers’ index showing the factory sector contracting this summer. “Manufacturing order books are holding up, and expectations for output [...]
IP crucial for growth, says CBI March 3, 2011 Robust intellectual property systems are “critical” for the UK’s economic growth, the CBI argued yesterday. “IP should be considered one of our crown jewels,” said CBI chief John Cridland.
RAPID RESPONSES September 29, 2011 EMBRACING EFTA Regarding Neil Bentley’s article in yesterday’s paper on the plans for a Tobin tax, I would like to add that Norway and Switzerland would also not be affected by such a tax because they are in the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). The European Economic Area’s (EEA) free movement of goods, services, capital [...]
CBI calls for land auctions to boost growth March 6, 2011 THE government should introduce “growth zones” to parts of the country that have become overly reliant on government funds in recent years, the Confederation for British Industry (CBI) said today. The group, which represents 240,000 businesses, called for de-regulation of some green belt areas, and land auctions in single areas, to stimulate growth. It said [...]
Gloomy outlook getting worse as confidence falls September 25, 2011 CONFIDENCE data from around Europe will be released over the course of this week, with analysts expecting the worst. Figures to be announced in the UK include the Confederation for British Industry’s (CBI) distributive trades survey, out tomorrow, which measures short-term trends in UK retail and distribution. Weak or falling sales are expected by economists. [...]